Means for handling freight



Aug. 12,1952 N. J. VAN NES MEANS FOR HANDLING FREIGHT Filed Feb. 24,195o 2 S-lEETS--SI-IEET l ug- 12, 1952 N. J. VAN NES MEANS FOR HANDLINGFREIGHT 2 SHEETS- SHEET 2 Filed Feb. 24, 1950 Patented Aug. 12, 1952MEANS FOR HANDLING FREIGHT Nicolas J ohn van Nes, Eldersley,Saskatchewan, Canada Application February 24, 1950, Serial No. 146,003-

This invention relates to means for handling freight placed in or oncarriers of any kind provided with two sets of wheels of differentdiameters, and the objects of the invention are:

1. To provide means to facilitate the handling of freight, by'reducingto a minimum the time required to load and unload freight of all kinds,in bulk or broken lots; reduce to a minimum mistakes in putting offfreight at the wrong station and avoid breakages.

2. yTo dispense with any type of fixed loading facilities and unloadingequipment at points along a given road for handling heavy freight.

3. To economize space in freight cars through providing simple means toplace the carrier-held freight compactly therein, whether on the floorof the car or above this floor, as hereinafter more particularlyexplained.

Figure 1 is a horizontal longitudinal section on the line |-I, Figure 2,with certain parts omitted, showinga plan view lof a carrier within thecar, and the liftv and the ldrop centre thereof.

Figure 2 is a'v'verticallongitudinal section on the'line 2-2, Figure l,showing means to raise and lower the lift.

Figure 3 is an enlarged vertical section on the line 3-3, Figure l,without the vmeans* to raise and lower the lift. l l f Figure 4 isA alongitudinally vertical section through the lift, showing an alternativemeans to move the drop centre ofthe lift, and

Figure5 is a detail of construction hereinafter referred to. v

In the drawings A"like characters of reference refer to the same parts.1

This invention can be! adapted for use on any type of freight car ormotor truck, since, under certain conditions, Vthe lift Iframe carryingthe drop centre need not necessarily be vertically moveable itself. Forinstance,` flat freight cars would not need a lift.

A box typ-e of freightcar has been schematically shown to 'illustratethe principle of this invention, with aligned doorways in the sidesthereof. f Y

The vterm carrier is used inthe specification and claims as defining atruck or container of any kind adapted to be carried alternately on twosets of different types of wheels of different diameters, carriedthereby.

The wheels of greater diameter may be provided with rubber tyres of anysuitable kind, if

desired. v

In the drawings have been illustrated footwalks or passageways down oneside of the car 4 Claims. (Cl. 105-366) 2 for the convenience and safetyof the freight handler, though they are not essential tol thisinvention.

When a carrier is being loaded before it is finally placed for storageor transportation on a freight car, it will be supported on its largerwheels, and as it is being placed in final position, it will be loweredto be run on the smaller wheels over tracks or rails while the largerwheels will be suspended above the floor or other support for the railsfor the smaller wheels.

Obviously the carrier may be made in various sizes and of largeenoughcapacity to obviate the use of any upper deck in the freight car.

`The drop centre of the lift is raised and lowered independently of themeans used tov raise and lower the lift as a whole.

The under frame and trucks of the freight car are not shown in thedrawings, since they are not germane to this invention. Y

The centrally-placed doorways 2, with the usual sliding doors 3, areshown in the freight car 4, illustrated to disclose this invention. Onlyone door may be used and it may be in the side of the car or at the endthereof, or there may be a door at the side of the car and also at theend. But the position of the'doorways 2, is preferred since a car may beloaded and unloaded more expeditiously with the lift located betweenthesedoorways and more or less centrally of the' car.

' Where the lift is located the floor of the car is removed as shown inFigure 2. g Y

The lift comprises any suitable construction of frame to support thedrop centre. In the form shown the frame consists of two members 5, and6, extending longitudinally of the carrthe length of the drop centre.These members are tied t0- gether by a bottom plate which forms the base'I of the lift and this base extends longitudinally of the freight carthe Vsame distance said members extend. v I

Carried by the side wallsof the car at each side of the doorway 2, is avertical T-shapedl post 8. The vertical bars 9, are carriedby themembers 5 and 6, at each corner of the lift (Figure 5) and arevertically guided by the posts 8, as the lift is raised and lowered.Attached to each bar 9, is a cable I0. These cables pass over idlers II,journalled in the brackets I2, carried by the car above 4the bars 9.These cables are attached to the end I3, of the piston-rod I4,

operating in the air cylinder I5, suitably sup-v ported from the Yroofof the car at each side thereof, or longitudinally centrally of the car.

In this case, only one cylinder may be used. The end I3, of eachpiston-rod I4, has a -flange I6, which slides along the flange I'I, of aplate I8', supported by the car at each side of the cylinder I5. Bymeans of the compressed air from the braking system of the car thepistonrod is moved to raise the lift. There is nothing novel in themeans illustrated and described to raise and lower the lift, and anysuitable means may be used for this purpose.

Carried by the base 1, and adjacent to the members 5 and 6, are railsI8, and I9, lying parallel thereto longitudinally of the car. Theserails are of the same length as the members 5, and 6 and are carried bythe base '1, and the top sides thereof are in the same plane as the topsides of the members 5, and 6.

Positioned between the rails I8, and I3, and vertically guided thereby,is the drop centre 20, of the lift. As shown in Figures 1 and 2, thedrop Vcentre 2, when the floor of the car where it is located has beenremoved, moves adjacent each section of the floor remaining after theremoval l of part of the floor.

Carried by the sections 2|, and 22, of the floor -of the car are pairsof rails 23, and 2d. A rail 23, vis in alignment with rail 24, of eachpair, and `of course these rails are in alignment with the rails I8,'andI9 (Figure 1) and are normally close thereto, when the parts are in theposition shown in Figure 3.

-Any suitable means may be used to vertically move the drop centre 20,independently of the other parts of the lift. One of the means shownl,comprises several pairs of cylinders 25, the pistons 25 of which passthrough a base '1, and are suitably attached to the under side of thedrop `centre 20. These cylinders are-suitably supported by braces 2'1,attached to the base and are supplied with air from the air tank of thecar (not shown) by the valve-controller piping '28.

The carrier 29 is a unitary structure and is provided with two pairs oi`land wheels Y3d adapted to run over plane surfaces, one pair beinglocated at each end of the carrier, and'v two pairs of hanged wheels 3Iadapted to run on rails or tracks, one pair being located on each sideof the carrier. The-wheels S are of uniform diameter and essentiallyextend below the bottom of the carrier and below the lowest part of thewheels 3i.

After acarrier has been loaded,V it is run onto a truck on wheels 35,and then to mount the carrier in a freight car the truck may be backedvto a freight platform, or backed up .tor a freight car. The carrier 29can then be rolled on its wheels 38from the truck onto the platform ordirectly intothecar onto the drop centre 23, overl the member Duringthis shifting of the carrier (Figure 3), the drop centre is held in thesame plane as that of the members 5 and G, and the top of the rails I Gand E9. When the wheels 3| are above these rails, the drop centre 20 islowered to permit the wheels 3| to rest on the Said rails, and itcontinues to be lowered until the drop centre is below the wheels 3S(see dottedlines, Figure 3). Then the freight handler ,runs the carrieroffthe rails I8 and I9 onto the rails 23 or 24, as the case may be,thusstoring it well back in the Vcar (Figures 1.and 2) l,When shiftingthe carrier oil? the lift, of course the rails I8 and I9 are fully inalignment with the rails 23 and 24.

`The top of the rails 2,3 and 2li is positioned sulliciently above thefloor of the ca r so that the wheels 3l) will move clear of same (Figure2).

A freight car may be provided with decks whereby carriers may be placedone above the other (Figure 3).

A deck may be of any suitable construction. As shown in Figure 3 itcomprises a floor 32, supported by brackets 33, or otherwise. This floorsupports rails 34, the top of which is far enough above the said floorvthat when the rails I8 and I9, on the lift, are brought fully intoalignment therewith, the carrier may be moved onto the deck over therails 34 without the wheels 30 touching the floor 32.

Partition walls 35 and 36 may be placed in the car spaced apart from oneof the side walls of the car, thus forming passageways 3'I, for theconvenience and safety of the freight handler. In Figure 3 the wall 36is shown as carrying one of the brackets 33. However, these walls arenot essential.

A part 38 of the under frame of a freight car may be used to lift thedrop centre 2S up to the same plane as the top of the rails I8 and I9'for loading the lift when the lift is lowered down far enough for thefo0t 39 of the rods 40 to contact the frame part 38. By means ofslidable bolts 4I controlled by levers 152,r pivoted to supports carriedby the members 5 and B, the drop centre is held in elevated position.These bolts are slid by the freight handler through the rails i8 and I9,at the proper time, underneath the drop centre and are likewise slidreversely when it is desired that the drop centre drop by its own weightbelow the top of the rails I 8 and I9, to permit thecarrierzto be runolf the lift over the rails I8 and I9, without touching it. i

Obviously, vto remove a carrier from a freight car, the rails I8 and I9must be wholly in the .forlnof construction illustrated in the drawingsof the novel features of the invention, it must be understood that nolimitations in construction-is intended thereby that will in anywisenarrow the scope of protection as defined by the claims;

I claim: v

1. The combination with a freight car provided with at least one doorwayin one side thereof, and onefpair of spaced rails extendinglongitudinally of Athe car from each end, thereof to the doorway area,of a solely vertically-movable plane support within said car permanentlyin said doorway area, a rail adjacent each side of said supportA andlying parallel thereto and permanently in alignment with thefirst-mentioned rails, means to support Said second-mentioned rails, andmeans, at times, to hold said plane support in the same plane as thatoccupied by the tops of said secondmentioned rails, and at times wherebysaidsupport may be solely moved vertically below the top of saidsecond-mentioned rails.

i .2. The combination with a freight car provided with at least onedoorway in one side thereof, and at least one pair of spaced railsextending longitudinally-of the car from each end thereof to the doorwayarea, of a lift located within said carin alignment with said doorwayarea, comprising a unitary frame provided with a pair Aof spaced railsxedly carriedthereby and extending. longitudinally of the car to bealigned with the rails in the car, means to support said frame, a dropcentre located between the rails carried bysaid frame, means tovertically move said lift as a whole, a deck carried within saidcarlaterally of said doorway area, a pair of spaced rails carried bysaid deck longitudinally of said car. the lift to be raised to place itsrails in alignment with the rails on said deck, and means to verticallymove said drop centre independently of said lift.

3. A carrier of unitary structure exteriorly provided beyond each cornerat each end thereof with a pair of wheels having fixed axes of rotationat right angles to each other and above the bottom of the carrier, oneof the wheels of each pair being a land wheel and the other a flangedwheel, the diameter of the land wheels being greater than the diameterof the flanged Wheels.

4. In combination a freight car provided with at least one doorway inone side thereof and one pair of spaced rails lying longitudinally ofthe car from each end thereof to the doorway area; a plane supportwithin said car permanently in said doorway area; a rail adjacent eachside of said support and lying parallel thereto and in alignment withthe first-mentioned rails; means to support said second-mentioned railsin the same plane as that occupied by the tops of said second mentionedrails; a carrier of unitary structure exteriorly provided beyond eachcorner at each end thereof with a pair of wheels having fixed axes ofrotation at right angles to each other, one of the wheels of each pairbeing a land wheel and the other a flanged wheel, the diameter of theland wheels being greater than the diainetelof the flanged wheels, thecarrier adapted to lbe rolled on its land wheels over said plane supportwhen this latter is in the same plane as the tops of saidsecond-mentioned rails to place its flanged wheels above saidsecondmentioned rails, and means to lower said plane support to permitthe flanged wheels to rest on said second-mentioned rails and permit thecarrier to be run onto the first-mentioned rails back into the car.

NICOLAS JOHN VAN NES.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the le ofthis patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS

